Modoc Gym Hit the mat!

Fit*no shoes on* also has a thick elbow brace on

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It hurt getting back into working out. It was only a few weeks since her injury and it had healed, yea but it wasn't great yet. Her ribs had fading bruising around them as well- not as purple but very yellow and green stage now. What irked her the most though was that she didn't have full range of motion in her shoulder yet and that irked her with how much longer it would be to be back in shape.

Still, she arrived and was warmed up, her hands taped up and the punchbag on the spacious mat laying on the floor as she flipped between a few moves before settling in to just straddle it. Panting with a few curls in her face, she chugged some water while giving her elbow a break for a minute until her wrestling date friend arrived.

Wearing old gym t-shirt and shorts.

Locke walked in with his ratty gym bag tossed over his shoulder and scanned the floor. The people here were a decent mix which had him breathing out in relief. Somehow he had expected Myla to frequent one of those intense gyms where every guy looked like they lived in baby oil.

He found her, turned away for the moment and looking like she was in the middle of a deep stretch. Oooh. Locke appreciated the view for one, two, three... and then he was moving in her direction. "Hey." Calling out as he shifted his bag off the shoulder and into his hand.

"Already warmed up, I see." Which duh, she was the professional here. Locke was the one looking seriously out of place.

Myla turned her head and looked, smiling at the sight of a familiar cute face. Turning now to face him, a few stray curls fell into her face from her bun now.

"I won't lie...I've been here an hour already," she said with a laugh as she got up and went over to him, "Mm so, how are you doing? " she asked, tone curious as she'd show him where he could put his stuff down.

It was relatively empty today; good for them at least so they didn't have to share the mat here with anyone!

He dropped his bag in the designated area, giving a quick check behind him to the small crowd of people. Must be a popular gym if this was a slow day. Then again, Locke didn't frequent regular gyms all that much; he preferred nature's gym and exercising his bear out in the mountains. The big guy enjoyed it too.

"Nothing exciting to report." He replied truthfully. The talk with his brother and Dakila was the one exception, but that was never going to leave his lips. It did spark an idea on how to respond next, though.

"This right here is the one highlight of my regular boring week." Locke scratched the back of his neck, smiling. Was that a little sappy? Most definitely.

"I think my only other fun news is I've found a nice little flat that I get to call my own in this place called Lawderhill," she had no clue if she said the name right but heck, it was a decent enough space and she wouldn't have trouble getting to the gym from there.

Also would give Dallas his own space to where he didn't have to worry about bumping into her constantly unless they planned it.

Oh, oh the comment was cute. She walked over to him, head tilting to the side, "Even knowing I'm about to pin you on that mat so many times...its going to be a highlight for you? " playfulness was laced in her tone, her brow lifted as she smiled at him. He was too cute- she wondered what he looked like blushing.

It was nice she was settling in. Locke had assumed she was relatively new to town, something about her wider gaze and mannerism that didn't quite scream 'local' yet. "Lauderhill is nice. Lots of eclectic places there." Good place to go exploring.

And then, oh boy. She didn't fear calling him out. Myla was a dog with a bone. Locke turned his head and stared in stunned amazement.

He wouldn't call his answering grin wolfish because he fought to keep his lips pressed tight. Rather, it was more like the spindling smile of the Grinch with deep-set creases in the arch of his cheeks.

"Oh damn." Curling a fist up to his mouth like a microphone. "Someone's pretty cocky. Think you can pin me that easily, eh?" Locke didn't actually feel all the bravado he was projecting but he'd ride this wave as far as it'd take him.

"Really? Any places there in particular that you recommend? " she asked curiously, brow raised as she'd take whatever tips he had to offer to her since she was very much new to this town.

Watching as his head turned and she caught that wirey grin rising on his lips, she found herself just grinning. There was a happy little wiggle-sway of her body as she moved to let a hand rest on his arm, her warm brown eyes trying to catch his right before she bent down at the knees and grabbed him around both his and flipped him so that he landed on his back on the mat.

Pain shot through her elbow at the move but she didn't stop there as she knelt next to him on the mat with one of her wrapped hands on his chest, "Yes...I do think so, " she said with a cheeky smile and wink.

He saw it coming and still wasn't ready for it. The precious few seconds that were allowed had to be spent on reassuring his bear that this would be quick and only moderately painful.

When the air punched out of him, Locke was ready. When he hit the mat... he was less so. The air returned with a wheeze. "I deserved that." Locke croaked, staring up at the vaulted ceiling of the gym and having to shut his eyes to the blinding fluorescents above.

Myla's voice was right by his head. Swipe. Gone. His bear instructed. They could shove her off so easily. But Locke remained on the mat, feeling the heat of his poor choice of words.

"So was that the first lesson?"

Myla very much enjoyed this position having him down under her and just taking in the move as she hovered a bit before pushing herself back to roll onto the balls of her feet and then standing up with her hands on her hips.

Reaching out with her good arm for him, her head tilted to the side some, "No...see that was to not underestimate me, " she said with some playful cheek, "First lesson is, if your ever in a real fight you don't get the chance to stretch BUT we can, so warm up, stretch, get those muscles warmed up because I'll be making them burn soon. "

Locke pushed himself up with his elbows, wiggling much like a worm. He got to a seated position and blinked up at Myla, a sheepish smile in place.

"Fair enough." Hands held out in surrender. Unlike the wiggling before, Locke bounced up to his feet gracefully, pulling both arms above his head to reach for the sky. Stretching he could do no problem.

"Well then, what kind of fighting style are you planning to demonstrate?"

Myla watched him, smiling some as he wriggled up and just accepted why she did what she did.

The way he popped up though, like a seasoned pro, colored her very impressed for the moment as she made a whistling sound of appreciation as he got on his feet.

"Well, I'm into mixed martial arts...so mixed but I can show you either boxing, jui-jitsue or judo. Which sounds more appealing for you? "

Locke heard a satisfying pop in his upper back as he bent to touch his toes. Not all the way, mind you, flexibility wasn't his strong suit.

The truth was he didn't know much about fighting styles. His question had largely been a distraction from having to stretch in judging silence.

Nibbling on his lip, he chose to be honest rather than try to fake his way through fighting practice. "They all sound good, but which one would be best if you were fighting someone say twice your size?"

Who was taller than him? He could probably see that confusion on her face for a moment before the relaxed smile showed up on her face.

"Jui jitsue is what you need most then, you use leverage and the other person's body weight against themselves. It's how small opponents like myself could say take down a two hundred pound opponent, " she explained as she'd move on the mat a bit, bending and twisting herself a little to stretch her back out a bit more.

Well alright. Locke was down to learn some martial arts. Anything that would give him an edge at the next fight night or manage to surprise Emmett was well worth Myla tossing him around and seeing exactly how much of a fighting novice he actually was.

"Cool. Jui jitsu sounds perfect." He clapped his hands together, followed with the classic bro head bang. Let's get this party started.

"Where do you want me, coach?"

Oh that question was far too easy and she truly couldn't resist it; sorry not sorry perhaps?

"I want you back on your back on the mat so I can teach you the starting move for a very useful submission move but I'll also show you first, " she told him with a wink as she got down on the mat onto her own back.

"These are called triangle sit-ups. Its good to know first off, that they suck like burpees but actually have a use, so, watch closely, I'll go slow, " she told him as she put her arms up close to under her chin, lifted and tilted her hips and then started to curl back while tucking one leg under the other legs knee and then repeating on the other side.

It was a rocking and rolling motion almost, "It's important...to remember...to breathe. You forget...you will pass out, " she told him as she did it four more times before rolling up to the flat of her feet and popping up.

"Your turn hot stuff."

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look a video because the writer CAN NOT describe this well lol

Yeah...Locke was athletic but this looked impossible. He'd be dying after two attempts. Rest in peace, Bower.

Once had put his 'back back on the mat,' Locke shimmied his shoulders for the best position.

"Okay..." Locke drawled, turning his head to look at her with his legs up in a poor attempt to copy her geometry sit-ups.

"What's the dominant position then?"

Myla watched him, her head bobbing a little bit, "Not bad, keep going, do five more, " she told him as she placed her hands on her hips.

"This helps with something called the triangle choke. Its quick but effective; you want your legs to be strong and able to hold and keep that person down at an angle where they can't get up easily while also holding onto an arm between your legs. When your done that, I'll show you, " she told him as she then got down on the mat in front of him.

Yep, she was going to let him put her into the choke hold first so that he could see and feel what it felt like with his own body first.

Continuing to act like a flopping fish and completing another rotation, his ear fell to the mat at the sound of a 'triangle choke.' Well, shit on a brick. Myla really was going to kill him with geometry!

Locke huffed and puffed his way through the last sit-up, feeling it in his lower stomach. Ugh, he wanted to flop like a starfish, but at least looking in shape was goal numero uno.

"I forgot how much I hate training." He whinned, but pulled himself up to a seated position to face Myla.

Was it a tiny bit entertaining watching him struggle with these moves? Yes. Goodness yes but something about a guy swearing during a work out was icing on this cake.

A little laugh left her as he sat up, "Imagine doing this seven days a week from five am until three pm and then having to do a little extra after, " she told him as she got in front of him and put a hand to his chest to have him lay back, "Alright, so your take my arm right here to rest against your stomach, " she told him, putting her braced arm across his chest, her other arm wrapping around his leg that she didn't make wrap around the back of her neck.

"So you hold that arm and squeeze with your muscles to pin me down against your body. Goal is to make it so I can't move and will tap out because I can't breathe, alright, so you hook your toe if you can under this leg, " she said tapping his thigh, "Now, squeeze, I want you to feel what its like because it's kind of strange at first but you can control a person easily- shit hold on, " she told him, her elbow brace catching on his shirt.

Frowning, she shifted a little, working to free the caught metal bit off of his shirt. Without thinking much, she jerked and ripped through his shirt with the edge of her old brace cutting him as she sat up. Myra wasn't the most astute for injuries, used to them honestly, so when he got cut and it got on her brace she was wiping it off of the brace- or trying to. She wiped it off but ended up cutting her own fingers, "Damn fucking brace... " she hissed, sitting back on her calves as she smeared and ended up getting Locke's blood into the cuts she's accidentally made on herself.

"You okay? " oblivious for a few moments as to what his blood was doing to her rather battered insides.

He followed her instructions with slow movements and was very aware of how unnatural this all felt on his body. Squeezing as she requested with a swift inhale, Locke tensed up.

Myla suddenly paused. Locke was at an awkward angle, unable to see beyond his periphery. It happened quickly, the sound of his shirt tearing coming first and Locke jack-knifing up as he felt something sting across his skin.

The bear was at the forefront, on high alert and demanding Locke check their body for injuries. Sluggishly, his hands explored, lifting periodically for inspection. After a third pass, a swatch of red inked his hands.

He was bleeding. "Shit." He said through clenched teeth. "I need to clean up." Locke was already up on his knees and moving. He needed to wipe this off ASAP and then make his excuses. Maybe this had been a bad idea after all.

Myla was already leaned away from him, her fingertips the only thing holding a scar now as the others on her body started to heal first before the new blood in her system started to really work its way through her. First at her elbow which felt like a sudden jolting pop and snap like she'd stretched too hard, her face screwing up as she got up quickly to hold her elbow now. Grimacing some she just nodded to him.

" Yea... go for it... I need a second, sorry," she told him while heading over to her gym bag and fishing out a bottle of water to chug but she only managed to grab it before her ribs did a similar popping of her ribs as they snapped and shifted inside her body causing her to hiss out as her hand rested on her sides.

What the ever loving hell was happening to her? She felt...wrong suddenly. Was it food poisoning or something from the gas station jerky she ate earlier?

Opening the water, she chugged it down to stop the heat blooming in her body before stuffing the empty bottle into her bag. This was not how she thought today was going to go with her in some weird pain and sweating from just existing in front of a guy she liked.

"Locke...shit man...I'm sorry I just am not feeling great suddenly, " she told him, her hand going for the towel in her bag to press against her face. She needed to call her doctor and see what was going on.

He wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. If Myla was out of it, then Locke would take the opportunity and skedaddle.

Locke drew his hands close to his chest, creating more distance. "Hey...yeah, let's end things for today. Eh?"

A half step back, almost forgetting his bag before nearly tripping over it. Locke snatched it up.

"No harm no foul over here. Seriously. We're all good. Text me when you fell better okay?" The strap slipped over his shoulder, too high and uncomfortable.

The bear persisted. Let's go.

The day barely had started and now she felt like utter hell. She was uncomfortable and aching, her body on fire with an unknown fever. Perhaps she had an infection that the stretch pushed out? She was no doctor and needed one badly.

The flirtiness was gone for the moment, "Yes...I'll make this up to you, I'm sorry, " she told him as she went to grab her bag.

Nodding a little, "I will...again I'm sorry about this, I have no damn clue what's going on, " she said with a small sigh and shake of her head. With her bag over her shoulder, she reached out and gave his arm a small squeeze if he let her before she'd start heading out with her free hand rubbing her face in confusion.

He should be more concerned about the sudden change in Myla. Locke didn't know her well, barely even at all. But, this wasn't like her. Jumpy and serious didn't suit her and if his bear wasn't raving for fresh air and to get out-out-out of the florescent lights and smelly tang of metal and other people's sweat.

There would be time after to contemplate her weird behavior. Locke needed to focus on looking as calm and collected as possible while running out of the gym with a bear snapping at his conscious. "No apologies. Take care of yourself first and we can pick things up later."

The touch was almost too much. Locke needed to go shift.

"Don't wait up! I'm heading out." Then he powerwalked away.

Damn, maybe he didn't like her as she thought, the way he couldn't bolt out of there fast enough.

Then again, she currently felt like complete and utter shit with her body doing some absolutely strange things. She gave a wave and then she was gone to, heading back to Dallas's place. She needed to contact her sports doctor. Her coach- anyone really that might have a clue as to what the forking hell was going on with her body.

She'd figure it out.